READERS My First Ballet Recital Amy Junor READERS Level Spacebusters: The Race to the Moon Beastly Tales Shark Attack! Titanic Invaders from Outer Space Movie Magic Plants Bite Back! Time Traveller Bermuda Triangle Tiger Tales Aladdin Heidi Zeppelin: The Age of the Airship Spies Terror on the Amazon Disasters at Sea The Story of Anne Frank Extreme Sports Spiders’ Secrets The Big Dinosaur Dig The Story of Chocolate School Days Around the World LEGO: Mission to the Arctic Star Wars: Star Pilot The X-Men School Fantastic Four: The World’s Greatest Superteam Level Days of the Knights Volcanoes and Other Natural Disasters Secrets of the Mummies Pirates! Raiders of the High Seas Horse Heroes Trojan Horse Micro Monsters Going for Gold! Extreme Machines Flying Ace: The Story of Amelia Earhart Robin Hood Black Beauty Free at Last! The Story of Martin Luther King, Jr Joan of Arc Welcome to The Globe! The Story of Shakespeare’s Theatre Spooky Spinechillers Antarctic Adventure Space Station: Accident on Mir Atlantis: The Lost City? Dinosaur Detectives Danger on the Mountain: Scaling the World’s Highest Peaks Crime Busters The Story of Muhammad Ali First Flight: The Story of the Wright Brothers D-day Landings: The Story of the Allied Invasion Solo Sailing LEGO: Race for Survival WCW: Going for Goldberg WCW: Feel the Sting WCW: Fit for the Title WCW: Finishing Moves JLA: Batman’s Guide to Crime and Detection JLA: Superman’s Guide to the Universe JLA: Aquaman’s Guide to the Oceans JLA: Wonder Woman’s Book of Myths JLA: The Flash’s Book of Speed JLA: Green Lantern’s Book of Inventions The Story of the X-Men: How it all Began Creating the X-Men: How Comic Books Come to Life Spider-Man’s Amazing Powers The Story of Spider-Man The Incredible Hulk’s Book of Strength The Story of the Incredible Hulk Transformers Armada: The Awakening Transformers Armada: The Quest Transformers Armada: The Unicron Battles Transformers Armada: The Uprising Transformers Energon: Megatron Returns Transformers Energon: Terrorcon Attack Star Wars: Galactic Crisis Graphic Readers: Curse of the Crocodile God Graphic Readers: Instruments of Death Graphic Readers: The Price of Victory Graphic Readers: The Terror Trail Fantastic Four: Evil Adversaries A Note to Parents and Teachers DK READERS is a compelling programme for beginning readers, designed in conjunction with literacy experts, including Maureen Fernandes, B.Ed (Hons) Maureen has spent many years teaching literacy, both in the classroom and as a consultant in schools Beautiful illustrations and superb full-colour photographs combine with engaging, easy-to-read stories to offer a fresh approach to each subject in the series Each DK READER is guaranteed to capture a child’s interest while developing his or her reading skills, general knowledge and love of reading The five levels of DK READERS are aimed at different reading abilities, enabling you to choose the books that are exactly right for your child: Pre-level 1: Learning to read Level 1: Beginning to read Level 2: Beginning to read alone Level 3: Reading alone Level 4: Proficient readers The “normal” age at which a child begins to read can be anywhere from three to eight years old Adult participation through the lower levels is very helpful for providing encouragement, discussing storylines and sounding out unfamiliar words No matter which level you select, you can be sure that you are helping your child learn to read, then read to learn! LONDON, NEW YORK, MUNICH, MELBOURNE, and DELHI Designer Hanna Ländin Project Editor Amy Junor Brand Manager Lisa Lanzarini Publishing Manager Simon Beecroft Category Publisher Alex Allan Production Editor Sean Daly Print Production Nick Seston Reading Consultant Linda Gambrell First published in the United States in 2008 by DK Publishing 375 Hudson Street New York, New York 10014 08 09 10 11 10 DD397 – 11/07 Page design copyright © 2008 Dorling Kindersley Limited All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the copyright owner Published in Great Britain by Dorling Kindersley Limited DK books are available at special discounts when purchased in bulk for sales promotions, premiums, fund-raising, or educational use For details, contact: DK Publishing Special Markets, 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014 SpecialSales@dk.com ISBN 978-0-7566-3826-9 (Hardback) ISBN 978-0-7566-3827-6 (Paperback) High resolution workflow by Media Development and Printing Ltd, UK Printed and bound by L-Rex, China Discover more at www.dk.com "% ) ' "%   ') ') 4/ $ /.% 02 $) $ /& )# %! $ My First Ballet Recital !, Written by Amy Junor %!   %! ' READERS / ! % Jamie looks forward to her ballet class Every Thursday after school, her mom drops her at the dance studio and Jamie quickly changes into her pink ballet leotard She can’t wait for class to start! Jamie sits cross-legged with the rest of her class, facing their teacher, Anna “I’ve got some great news for you,” says Anna “We are going to have a ballet recital So you will get to dance on stage in front of all your family and friends.” Jamie is really excited! Imagine, dancing on stage for the first time in a beautiful costume with everyone watching! “So,” continues Anna, “You are all going to make up your own special dance Think about what you can use in your dance that we learned in class.”  Anna smiles “But there’s more good news.” “Tell us! Tell us!” begs Coco, one of Jamie’s best friends in the class “Well, today, we have some very special guests coming in But I’m not going to let them in until you’ve all done your warmups and stretches properly.” Jamie has always dreamt of performing on stage with her family and friends watching her, and in just a few weeks, her dream will come true!  Before Anna has a chance to ask them to, the students stretch their legs out in front of them and point and flex their toes “We need to warm up properly before we start so that we don’t hurt ourselves when we’re dancing,” Anna tells them “Imagine if I hurt my leg and couldn’t dance in the recital!” gasped Jamie “Exactly!” says Anna Jamie finds it hard to concentrate She wants to know who their special guests are  Pointing feet All dancers practice pointing and flexing their feet and toes This is a good way to both stretch and strengthen the muscles in the feet at the same time Jamie tries to sneak a peek at the door to see if she can see anyone “Jamie! Eyes straight ahead!” scolds Anna, smiling “Now walk your fingers down to your toes and stretch.” Jamie and Coco try to what Anna says without looking at the door!  Jamie turns her head and whispers to Coco, “Who you think the guests are?” Coco looks at Jamie “I don’t know Maybe it’s a ballerina!” Anna sees them whispering “Now we will warm up our neck muscles­­—although Coco looks up, pretending to see an imaginary spider  Dressing up is so much fun! No character is complete without a costume Joe tries on a hat and waistcoat from the dress-up box and instantly becomes a street urchin Alex wears a long, brown leotard When he adds some brown ears that he finds in the dress-up box, he immediately looks just like a fox! April tries to find something to complete her cat outfit She finds a white leotard to match her headband Now that Alex looks like a fox, he practices walking like a fox too! 36 Tutu Jamie pulls everything out of the dress-up box, looking for something a beautiful fairy princess would wear Finally, at the bottom of the box, she finds a big, white tutu that is perfect for her dance! Now that April looks like a cat, she has to move like one She walks with quiet, stealthy steps and imagines that she is ready to pounce! At the end of the class, they all take their costumes home so that they can practice dancing in their costumes before their performances 37 Today is the last class before the recital Jamie is excited and a little bit nervous! They practice making up dances to music April feels elegant and glamorous wearing the tutu 38 The piano music is light and swirly, so everyone spins and twirls around the room Jamie imagines she’s a fairy princess and moves with light, airy steps April dances and spins with happy, light steps April puts on the white tutu and makes up a new dance Wearing the tutu makes April feel very different to when she was dressed as a cat so her dance is very different too Making up a dance like this is called improvisation Demi pointe To dance lightly across the room, April dances on the balls of her feet This is called dancing demi pointe Young ballet dancers practice dancing demi pointe so one day they can dance on pointe 39 The boys pretend that they are jumping over crocodiles Joe and Alex have become really great friends The music changes It is now energetic and fast Joe and Alex love being able to run around They practice the jumps and leaps they have learned, trying to find out who can jump the highest and leap the furthest Both of the boys want to use lots of different jumps in their performance and the music is perfect for them They practice fast jumps, slow jumps, long jumps, short jumps, and making different shapes in the air 40 At the end of the class, Joe and Alex run and jump out the door The next time the students are all together will be the recital! Jamie waves an excited goodbye to her friends Coco and April 41 Finally, the day of Jamie’s performance has arrived She is really nervous and excited that she is about to be on stage for the first time! Her family and friends have all come to watch her debut 42 Jamie keeps her head high as she spins and leaps across the stage finishing her dance gracefully Jamie has been practicing for weeks now and knows her dance really well Her hands tremble as she puts on her beautiful white tutu and paints on her stage make-up Once she is in costume, Jamie looks exactly like a fairy princess and is ready to dance! She twirls around the room and leaps through the air with light, graceful fairy steps It feels like magic to be dancing in front of everyone and seeing them smile as they watch her perform In just a few moments, Jamie forgets she is on stage and is completely absorbed in her dance 43 When Jamie’s dance is finished, everyone in the audience claps Jamie can see her parents sitting at the back of the room They smile at her proudly, which makes her feel even happier Jamie’s family walk up to her on stage and give her a lovely big bunch of flowers as a present for being brave enough to dance in front of everyone It reminds Jamie of when she gave flowers to Amy and makes her feel special Jamie practices a curtsey 44 She holds the edges of her skirt .points her toe and bends her legs Jamie uses all the tips she learned from Amy to curtsey perfectly Jamie loves hearing everybody clapping because they enjoyed her dance so much She feels herself blush and curtseys one more time Afterwards, Jamie can’t stop feeling very excited! This is the best day of her life! Jamie can’t wait to perform in front of everyone again! 45 When the performance is over, Jamie doesn’t want to take off her fairy princess dress and April doesn’t want to stop being a cat! They are all still really excited as they change back into their class clothes and sit cross-legged on the floor Everybody claps for each other because they did so well 46 It was so much fun to perform on stage and to watch each other The class can’t wait until their next recital They want to start practicing for it right away! Although it was a lot of hard work for a few minutes on stage, they all think that every second was worth it 47 Glossary A Arabesque arab-ESK A position where you stand on one leg with the other stretched out behind you Demi pointe dem-EE pointe When you stand on the balls of your feet B G Barre bar A wooden rail attached to the wall of the ballet studio to help you balance while you practice your exercises Grand plié gron plee-AY A full knee bend C Costume An outfit that helps to create a character D Dégagé day-gar-SHAY When you point your foot to the side, front or back in preparation for moving 48 Demi plié dem-EE plee-AY A half-knee bend L Leotard The stretchy clothes worn by dancers P Pas de deux pah der DUH Two people dancing together Plié plee-AY Bending your knees Posture The way you stand or sit Pointe shoes Ballet shoes with ribbons and hard blocks at the toes worn by female dancers when their feet are strong enough after several years of training R Révérence rev-er-ONS The curtsey or bow at the end of a class or performance S Studio The room where you learn to dance T Tutu too-too A dance costume with a frilly net skirt Index Arabesque 23 Audience 25, 30, 32, 34, 44 Grand plié 17 Improvisation 39 Ballet shoes 26 Barre 16, 17, 18 Bow 30 Costume 4, 24, 28, 36, 37, 43 Curtsey 30, 45 Dégagé 18 Demi plié 16, 17 Demi pointe 39 Fifth position 14, 15, 17 First position 15, 17, 18, 19 Five positions 14-15 Fourth position 15 Jump 21, 40, 41 Leap 20, 21, 27, 40, 43 Leotard 4, 36 Make-up 24, 35, 43 Music 13, 14, 38, 39, 40 Painting faces 34, 35, 43 Pas de deux 22, 25 Pointe shoes 26, 27 Practicing 14, 15, 18, 21, 26, 32, 37, 38, 39, 40, 43, 47 Recital 38, 41, 47 Révérence 25 Second position 15, 19 Stage 4, 5, 24, 28, 30, 34, 42, 43, 44, 47 Studio 12, 13, 20, 21 Third position 15 Tutu 16, 24, 28, 29, 37, 38, 39, 43 Warm up 5, 6, 8, 14 Wobbling 18, 19 READERS Jamie and her class are getting ready for their first ballet recital Watch them learn new steps and meet some surprise guests! DK READERS Stunning photographs combine with lively illustrations and engaging, age-appropriate stories in DK READERS, a multilevel reading program guaranteed to capture children’s interest while developing their reading skills and general knowledge Learning to read Beginning to read • High-frequency words • Picture word strips, picture glossary and simple index • Labels to introduce and reinforce vocabulary • High level of adult participation helpful • Simple sentences and limited vocabulary • Picture glossary and simple index • Adult participation helpful • Longer sentences and increased vocabulary Beginning • Information boxes full of extra fun facts to read alone • Simple index • Occasional adult participation helpful • More complex sentence structure Reading • Information boxes and alphabetical glossary alone • Comprehensive index Proficient readers • Rich vocabulary and challenging sentence structure • Additional information and alphabetical glossary • Comprehensive index With DK READERS, children will learn to readÑthen read to learn! I S B N 978-0-7566-3827-6 50399 Printed in China $3.99 USA $4.99 Canada Discover more at www.dk.com 780756 638276 ... Arabesque 23 Audience 25, 30 , 32 , 34 , 44 Grand plié 17 Improvisation 39 Ballet shoes 26 Barre 16, 17, 18 Bow 30 Costume 4, 24, 28, 36 , 37 , 43 Curtsey 30 , 45 Dégagé 18 Demi plié 16, 17 Demi pointe 39 ... 35 , 43 Pas de deux 22, 25 Pointe shoes 26, 27 Practicing 14, 15, 18, 21, 26, 32 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40, 43, 47 Recital 38 , 41, 47 Révérence 25 Second position 15, 19 Stage 4, 5, 24, 28, 30 , 34 , 42, 43, ... 17 First position 15, 17, 18, 19 Five positions 14-15 Fourth position 15 Jump 21, 40, 41 Leap 20, 21, 27, 40, 43 Leotard 4, 36 Make-up 24, 35 , 43 Music 13, 14, 38 , 39 , 40 Painting faces 34 , 35 ,